The Spaces in Between
by Mira Ruskin
Summary: Alone in the weight room, Senji pushes his limits in more ways than one. My first attempt at writing like this. SenjixGanta
1. A Rendering

**Hey kids. I've never written anything yaoi/shounen-ai/smut/whatever and I kind of want to try my hand at it, so I'm starting with something simple and "flirty" like this. Also, I'm REALLY surprised at the lack of GantaxSenji pairings. So I'm gonna go ahead and start there. If there's enough interest in this, I'll add some chapters and see where this goes. ;) Again... first time doing something like this. Constructive criticism greatly appreciated. It's not much, but I'd like to get used to writing this kind of thing. After all, I read it all the time D; ugh lol, hope you enjoy~! **

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><p>The Spaces in Between<br>1. A Rendering

The muscles beneath Senji's skin were dancing. It was fascinating watching them ripple and shudder with each repetition. The weights rose above his head and back down again, over and over. They tore, and the liquid that filled the burning spaces in between quivering sinews caused his body to swell and perspire. After two hours of pushing himself, he let the weights hit the floor. His body glowed almost, dripping with sweat. He briefly used his discarded shirt to wipe his face before he turned to smirk at Ganta.

"If you keep coming to watch me work out every day I'm going to think you have a crush on me," he cackled at the young boy who was fiddling with the smaller weights, but obviously concentrating more on the man he idolized. Ganta's face flushed instantly.

"I-I just want to be strong like you!" Ganta said, furrowing his brow and setting his jaw in a scowl he'd learned from the Crow before him. Senji shook his head and chuckled.

"Time and dedication, kid," he said, watching himself flex in the floor-to-ceiling mirrors in the weight room. Ganta watched him closely. He more than idolized this man at this point. There was something about Senji that made him feel safe and yet vulnerable at the same time. Ganta watched the way the beads of sweat drank up the light in the room. He didn't notice Senji staring right back at him.

"Your turn," Senji said abruptly. Ganta snapped out of his trance-like gaze and swallowed nervously. "What?" he stuttered, not really having heard what Senji said. Lately Ganta had been getting lost in his head, always letting his imagination toy with that look on Senji's face. Senji grinned wickedly, "Stand up."

Ganta did as he was instructed and waited patiently. "Alright," Senji began loudly, hands on his hips, "you wanna be strong? I'll make you strong. We'll make you a man, yet." Turning around, Senji grabbed two fifty pound weights and effortlessly thrust them toward Ganta. Ganta looked dumbstruck.

"I can't hold that! I can barely shrug thirty pounds," he said, thoroughly embarrassed. Ganta's strengths lied in his compassion and his will, not in his muscles.

"You have to start somewhere, brat," Senji said and held out the weights again. Ganta frowned. He wasn't going to let Senji think he was whining, so he curled his fingers around the weights. "I'm gonna let go," Senji warned before dropping the full weight of the equipment onto Ganta's hands. Ganta's eyes widened and the strain was visible in the trembling in his arms.

"Just hold onto 'em and get used to the weight, then curl your arms up," Senji instructed. Ganta turned wide eyes onto the older man. He had to be crazy! There was no way he could curl a fifty pound weight. But Ganta's stubbornness wouldn't let him unfurl his white knuckles from the weight. He sucked in a breath and attempted to curl them up toward his chest.

Senji watched carefully as the boy tried desperately to curl the weights. The struggle was so apparent that Senji's shoulders ached just watching him. But something in that little boy's determination had always been attractive to Senji. As Ganta let air hiss through his lips, Senji watched the boy's body carefully, lest he really hurt himself trying to prove his strength.

As Senji watched Ganta's small frame, a strange feeling overwhelmed him. He'd never seen Ganta shirtless. As odd as it was, a devious curiosity sparked within Senji.

"You shouldn't work out with a tee shirt on, it'll get all bunched up and you'll lose focus," Senji instructed. Ganta was so relieved for a reason to drop the weights that he let them hit the floor immediately. "Ok," he grumbled, not picking up on the tricky tone in Senji's voice. Ganta pulled his shirt up to his shoulders and awkwardly tried to get it over his head.

Senji stared at the boy's pale frame, his pink nipples, the lack of body hair. A familiar heat began to manifest within Senji and he swallowed nervously. Ganta seemed to be having trouble, so Senji reached down and grabbed the shirt for him. "For Christ's sake, kid," he growled and stepped forward to help him take it off.

When Senji pulled at Ganta's shirt, it threw Ganta off balance. He stumbled forward, bringing the two chest to chest. Senji froze instantly. Innocently, Ganta laughed and cursed Senji. "Don't make me fall!"

Senji clenched his jaw. He had only wanted to look, not touch, to respect whatever boundaries there may have been. The moment Ganta's small pink nipples grazed his chest however, things changed. Senji pulled the tee shirt off Ganta's head, revealing the giggling boy's face. Ganta went to back up, to improve the distance between them, but before he could Senji placed a firm grip on his shoulders.

"S-Senji?" Ganta said, startled by the pressure in the man's hands, "What are you-"

"Shut up."

"What?"

"I said shut up," Senji said, his voice gruff. Ganta felt threatened staring at Senji's eyes, so he quickly looked down. Senji had a reason for everything, so why was he holding onto Ganta so tightly.

Senji could barely breathe. Something about this boy was making him crazy. Sure, he'd fantasized about Ganta before, but with this small touch something had triggered Senji's lustful nature. Graceless as usual, Senji bent and planted his lips on Ganta's neck.

Ganta stiffened and sucked in a sharp breath, at a complete loss for words. He couldn't process the moment. All he felt was Senji's hot mouth enveloping his neck, the man's tongue tracing circles over where Ganta's heartbeat visibly pounded underneath the skin. With an audible _smack_ Senji pulled his lips away from the boy.

Ganta took this moment to break away from the man, violently twisting out of his reach and throwing himself back. He was panting, in complete shock.

"Ganta," Senji began, taking a step forward. Ganta screamed, startling the crow, "No!" Before Senji could take another step, Ganta vanished out of the door.


	2. A Taste

Ganta sat with his head hung low over a bowl of ramen. The steam had long ago stopped tickling his chin. His stomach was growling, but he couldn't feel the hunger. He was far too concerned with what had transpired in the weight room.

"Senji," Ganta breathed. He had only run because he couldn't process the absolute peace within his body. Every day he would watch Senji work out under the pretense of "being cool." In truth, all Ganta wanted was a taste. Something deep within the core of this boy hungered to taste the musculature spread across the Crow he looked up to, a taste of the salt that trailed Senji's muscles.

Ganta wasn't angry with Senji, not in the least, but he was thoroughly embarrassed. As many times as Ganta had fantasized about that moment, it hadn't happened anything like he'd hoped. In a way, Ganta had imagined himself the aggressor although he could never get the nerve to try anything. Senji hadn't been fair. Ganta was completely unprepared for that, and Ganta's mind simply shut down. In the fight or flight moment, Ganta simply ran. Now he was letting the details catch up with him.

Details like the smell of Senji's exhausted body, the roughness of his hands and the way they contrasted so perfectly with the surprising softness of his lips…

The clatter of Ganta's spoon hitting the floor jolted him out of his daydream. He hadn't realized he'd dropped it, or even picked it up to be honest. He was completely dumbstruck, and it was all the Crow's fault. Ganta had always been curious, but far too shy to act on it for some reason. He didn't know how to act in these situations. Just like his fighting style, he figured the right moves would come to him when he needed them most.

Frowning, Ganta realized Senji had been the one to teach him how to fight. He was the one who named his famed 'Ganta Gun.' Maybe the incident in the weight room was Senji just trying to teach him other things now. Maybe letting Senji teach Ganta a thing or two wouldn't hurt. But Ganta didn't want just another lesson, he wanted something more. He didn't want to have to worry about what Senji was feeling all the time.

"Are you going to eat?" a gruff voice called from the doorway. Ganta's heart leapt into his throat. Without opening his mouth, he had somehow called Senji to him.

"No," Ganta admitted, staring at his cold soup.

"Good, because I'm starving," Senji grinned, and even Ganta could tell it was obviously forced.

Ganta stood from his chair in his small room. He hadn't wanted to socialize, so he'd chosen to eat dinner away from the lounge. Senji slid his lithe form into the seat Ganta had just vacated and began to eat the chilled soup.

This was too normal. Senji was acting like nothing had happened, like he hadn't kissed Ganta, like he hadn't set the boy's emotions into a tumultuous tailspin and sparked something deep within the core of Ganta's nature while touching on something very close to his heart. Ganta's hands curled into little fists as Senji sucked down noodles, tilting the bowl to his lips to slurp the rest of the broth. Finally, when the soup was gone, Senji stood and stretched. A violent wince directly followed. He cursed, gently rolling his shoulder.

"Shit, think I tore something," he shrugged, wincing again, "Do you fight this week?"

"What are you doing?" Ganta broke down, nearly growling at the Crow.

"Huh?" Senji lifted a brow. He knew what the boy meant, but he wasn't one for talking. Never had been. He preferred ignoring the problem.

"You're acting like nothing happened!" Ganta yelled.

"So it meant something to you after all, eh?" Senji grinned. His nervousness in the weight room had dissipated and now his normal cocky nature had returned. Ganta stuttered, desperate for a response. Senji's acknowledgement of the moment had caught him off guard.

"Shut the door," Senji said coolly.

"What?" Ganta stuttered.

Rolling his eyes, Senji crossed the room and gently closed the door, making sure to lock it behind him. Ganta swallowed nervously. He barely had time to react as Senji yet again swiftly closed the distance between them.

"I know you want this too. Don't ever run from me like that again," Senji said, his breath teasing Ganta's hair. There was no space between them, Senji had made sure of that. Ganta's lip trembled. He could feel his heart swelling in his chest. For Ganta, it wasn't just about the physical attraction.

Ganta lifted his arms slowly at first, and then quickly wrapped them around Senji's whole body, trapping the Crow's arms at his sides. There were no words for this moment. Senji broke the silence by pulling his arms out of Ganta's little trap and pulled his fingers through the boy's hair. He tilted Ganta's head back and parted his lips. A hesitant breath escaped Senji's mouth.

"I fight this week," Ganta said, tears rolling down his cheeks.

"I do, too," Senji said, and brought their lips together in a kiss that made Ganta shake with fear and passion all wrapped up together.

Nothing mattered in the next moment. Nothing but the taste of their tongues dancing together and tracing lips and nipping at each other. Senji's full mouth had no problem swallowing most of Ganta's trembling lip. He sucked and pulled and could barely contain himself. And just like Ganta had hoped, the moves simply came to him. His lips and his tongue had no problem playing with Senji's in ways that gave the Crow chills.

Ganta gripped Senji's sides with white knuckles, desperately grappling to hold onto the moment, because in two days they'd be pitted against each other in this week's Carnival Corpse.

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><p><strong>Thank you so much everyone! I got a really positive response to the first chapter, so I think I'm going to continue. I'm a slow updater. I'll do my best to keep you satisfied though. Let me know how this one is. I like complicating things. 3 I also screwed up adding this chapter &amp; had to delete it the first time, so let's hope I did it right this time. Hmm.<strong>


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